Democrats celebrated Sen.-elect Scott Colom’s victory in Mississippi after the Democrat defeated Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and broke a decades-long streak in one of the party’s toughest states.
Colom will become the first elected Black senator from Mississippi since 1881 and the first Democrat to win a Senate seat there since 1982.
Hyde-Smith, who had President Donald Trump’s endorsement, conceded Wednesday after more than a week of counting absentee and provisional ballots.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer quickly embraced the result. “Blue Mississippi is here,” Schumer posted on X. He also called the senator-elect “the only person who could’ve gotten this done” and traced that confidence back to their first meeting.
Rep. Bennie Thompson also pointed to a long relationship with the senator-elect that began through the Mississippi Black Leadership Institute.
We may have had to count One Mississippi, Two Mississippi, but Blue Mississippi sure has a nice ring to it! Scott, you put your heart and soul into this race because you believe in the promise of your state’s people. And they believed in you right back. I’m honored to have stood… pic.twitter.com/N9MQnxJvtL
— Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) November 11, 2026
The congressman recalled his 2022 nomination by former President Joe Biden for a federal judgeship, an effort Hyde-Smith blocked the following year.
He called that outcome “disappointing” but maintained that it did not change his confidence in the future senator or his commitment to Mississippi.
Colom later told The New York Times that he probably would not have entered the Senate race had he been confirmed to the federal bench.
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“Having another Mississippi Democrat alongside me in Congress who understands the needs of Mississippians means a great deal,” Thompson added.
Former President Bill Clinton joined the celebration with a play on the state’s name.
“We may have had to count One Mississippi, Two Mississippi, but Blue Mississippi sure has a nice ring to it,” Clinton wrote on social media. He praised Colom for pouring himself into the race and congratulated him on the win.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear framed the result as a sign of renewed strength for Democrats in the South, arguing that Southern Democrats had long been overlooked before declaring that “we are on the rise.”
Sen. Cory Booker, one of the senator-elect’s early supporters, celebrated a victory that “showed that hope rises in the South, and that Mississippi matters!”
The campaign itself centered heavily on affordability and dissatisfaction with Hyde-Smith’s record. Colom also tapped local frustration over data centers and Mississippi’s gerrymandering efforts.
He attacked her support for Trump’s domestic policy package, tariffs and the war with Iran, arguing that those policies had driven up costs for Americans while threatening vulnerable Mississippians through Medicaid cuts.
One of the race’s most memorable exchanges came after the Republican suggested that consumers struggling with high beef prices “pick another protein.”
Colom seized on the remark in a campaign spot that turned her own wording against her, with voters calling on Mississippi to “pick another senator.”
The Democrat spent much of the race pushing back against the idea that Mississippi was unwinnable terrain for his party. His pitch was that overlooked voters, including the state’s large Black electorate and disaffected white residents, could make the contest competitive.
Colom criticized both Hyde-Smith and national Democrats for failing to compete seriously in the state. “We were never a lost cause. We were [a] betrayed cause,” he told NBC News.
Hyde-Smith had been appointed to the Senate in 2018 after Sen. Thad Cochran resigned and won a full term in 2020 by about 10 percentage points. She was seeking another term in a state Trump carried by nearly 23 percentage points in 2024.
The contest remained unresolved for more than a week after Election Day while officials counted absentee and affidavit ballots. He held a narrow lead through the process before the Associated Press and called the race Wednesday.
The incumbent then acknowledged the result. “While this is not the outcome we worked for or hoped for, I respect the decision of Mississippi voters,” Hyde-Smith said. In the concession video, the Republican congratulated Colom and wished him well as he prepared to represent the state.
The victory ends a decades-long Republican hold on Mississippi’s Senate delegation and adds to a midterm election in which Democrats reclaimed control of Congress.
Questions over the close count may not disappear immediately. Mississippi has no automatic recount procedure. Republican campaign lawyers have already moved to protect the paper trail, asking state officials to retain election records and affidavit ballots. The narrow margin may still lead to a legal fight, though no specific challenge has been made.
Colom had expressed confidence before the final call as the ballot count continued. The Wednesday after Election Day, the Democrat told reporters he was “very happy with where we stand” and remained confident the remaining ballots would confirm his lead once the process played out.
In celebrating the victory, the senator-elect invoked Mississippi figures including Hiram Revels, Medgar Evers and Fannie Lou Hamer while describing the faith required to keep campaigning when donors and others doubted the race was winnable.
He recalled moments when donors would not answer his calls because they did not believe such a result was possible. “But I kept the faith,” Colom added.
The senator-elect also remembered an early town hall in Jackson that drew only 10 people.
Colom credited supporters, saying the victory was “something that we did.” He described his own role as having “the courage to imagine a night like this.”
